Collapsible wire basket



July 22, 1952 R. M. KOCH 2,604,288 COLLAPSIBLE WIRE BASKET Filed Dec. 20, 1950 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 q fia. '5.

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COLLAPSIBLE WIRE BASKET Filed Dec. 20, 1950 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 U INVENTOR. Roma/c /1. K06}! Patented July 22, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE COLLAPSIBLE WIRE BASKET Roderic M. Koch, Evansville, Ind.

Application December 20, 1950, Serial No. 201,775

3 Claims. 1

The present invention relates to the general class of supports, stands, or portable receptacles, and more specifically to an improved collapsible wire basket which while well adapted for various purposes and uses is especially designed as a floral basket for receiving and retaining flowers or a vase in which the flowers are contained. The parts of the basket are fashioned, preferably, from metallic wire stock of appropriate diameter or gauge, and the parts are united into separable frames or sections which may readily be interlocked and jointed together to effect a pleasing and ornamental appearance for the basket.

As is well known, rigidly constructed and nonseparable wire baskets of this type are of necessity cumbersome and awkward to handle, and in storing, as well as in shipping, they occupy and require desirable space far out of proportion to the actual shape and size of the basket. For instance, when in use the feet of the basket must spread a considerable distance in various directions to prevent the basket from toppling over under weight of the flowers; and together with the usual handle of the basket, such a basket for shipping purposes requires a cumbersome carton or package of comparatively great size and shape.

The present invention was conceived and physically embodied in commercial baskets of the knockdown or collapsible type having separable sections or frames including resilient parts by means of which a pair of flat frames may manually be assembled and their respective parts rigidly united and interlocked to provide a substantial and durable basket of this type.

The invention consists in certain mechanical structures and combinations and arrangements of parts as will hereinafter be described and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated one complete example of a physical embodiment of my. invention wherein the parts are combined and arranged in accord with one mode I have devised for the practical application of the principles of the invention. It will however be understood that changes and alterations are contemplated and may be made in these exemplifying drawings and mechanical structures, within the scope of my claims, without departing from the principles of the invention.

Figure 1 is a view in elevation of one of the handle-frames. Figure 2 is a view in elevation of one of the body-frames. Figure 3 is an edge view of a portion of a handle-frame illustrating a welded joint.

Figure 4 is a perspective view showing the manner of initially interlocking the handleframe and the body-frame. Figure 5 is a perspective view of the basket; and

Figure 6 is an exploded view in perspective showing the interlocking means for the two sections of the basket.

In the process of manufacturing the baskets suitable tools and appliances are employed for making the standardized parts of the baskets, which are cut from wire stock, and the parts are assembled and welded together into two types of frames, as a handle-frame and a body-frame, for joint use. The handles and the body-frames are separately made; then the handles are welded to the body frames to form handle-frames; and the basket is completed by interlocking a bodyframe with a handle-frame to provide a resiliently jointed basket.

For storage purposes at the factory the tall and fiat handle-frames, and the shorter fiat body-frames, may readily be stacked in separate tiers; for shipping purposes the frames may be shipped in separate stacks, or a handle-frame and a complementary body-frame may be packed flat in a carton Or parcel-post package; and finally, without the use of skilled labor, a handle-frame and a body-frame may be united and interlocked to insure a durable, light-weight, and stable basket, which may readily be knocked down if desired.

The wire handle I is preferably bent from stock material to form a loop of desirable size with its ends terminating in vertically arranged inwardly ourved or semi-circular attaching hooks 2, 2, which hooks when made of metal may be welded to a complementary body-frame of the basket.

The basket comprises two duplex or standardized wire frames of Venturi shape, and these two body-frames are equipped with complementary and coacting resilient interlocking parts that form substantial joints uniting the frames to form a rigid knock down structure.

Each frame is made up of a pair of opposed wires which are fashioned on the lines of compound curves to form upper outspreading arms 3, 3 that terminate at their upper ends in outwardly curved semi-circular hooks 4.

For attaching a handle to a frame the two hooks of a handle are brought into contact with the two hooks of the frame, and the pairs of hooks are welded together as at W to form a substantial joint that permanently fixes the handle on the frame to provide a handle-frame for the basket.

basket are connected or united by a short cross bar 8, of resilient Wire, which at its opposite ends is welded as at W to the uprights of the frame, and the cross bar 8 of one of the frames is fashioned with a central upper notch 9.

The feet 6, 6, of the body frame are connected or united by a longer cross bar of resilient material, and the ends of this longer cross bar are secured to the feet in suitable manner as by welding at W. The longer cross bar it is also provided with an attaching or interlocking notch as H extending into the under side of the cross bar.

The flat duplex frames are of similar construction and shape, except for the location of the interlocking notches that are utilized in fastening together a pair of the frames.

Thus in the frame to which the handle is attached to form the handle-frame of Fig. 2 the short resilient cross bar l2, which is welded at its ends to the uprights of the frame, is fashioned with a central lower notch l3; and the longer resilient cross bar It, which is welded at its ends to the feet of the frame, is fashioned with an upper central notch it.

The cross bars 8 and [2 are spaced equidistant above the two bars 50 and. I l; and the upper notch 9 contacts and engages a lower notch [3, while the lower notch ll of bar Ill engages the upper notch l of bar Hi.

By coaction of the pairs of notches the two frames are united in a substantial and rigid manner, the crossed upper bars 8 and [2 form a seat for a vase or other receptacle, and the crossed bars [El and it together with the feet 6, 6, form a wide-spread ground-engaging bearing or support for the basket.

tional contact, the bars are spaced to permit this movement, and when the notches are engaged the resiliency of the cross bars is instrumenta1 in clamping together the interlocked bars to maintain them in rigid relationship.

For collapsing the two frames from upright interlocked position, the first frame is held in the left hand and the second frame is grasped in the right hand; downward pressure is applied to the second frame, thus depressing the lower resilient cross bar of the first frame and thereby disengaging the upper notches. The second frame is then turned downwardly to the right, to horizonta1 position, slid to the left, and then turned to withdraw the left hand wire, foot first, from the first frame.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a knockdown floral basket, a pair of bodyframes each consisting of two upright laterally spaced wires forming upper diverging arms and lower diverging legs, said legs terminating in inturned feet and said arms terminating in inturnedand curved hooks, a loop-handle having its open ends welded to the hooks of one frame, each frame having an upper short horizontal cross bar welded to its wires and a lower resilient longer cross bar welded to its feet, said frames being disposed in diametrical relation, and the cross bars of one frame having centrally arranged notches interlocked with complementary notches on the other frame.

2. In a knockdown basket, the combination with a pair of flat upright diametrically arranged duplex wire frames adapted to receive a floral receptacle, each said frame having a pair of outspreading arms, a pair of diverging legs and supporting feet for the legs, of a pair of vertically The method of assembling, as well as the manher of collapsing or knocking down and disengaging the frames is illustrated in Fig. 4, where one frame, as the handle-frame is held upright in the left hand. The second frame is grasped in the other hand and held in flat horizontal position. The left-side wire with its hook 4 in advance is inserted into the space between the upper and lower cross bars of the first frame, and

then the second frame is advanced through this space to bring its cross bars perpendicular to and resting upon the cross bars of the firstframe. Then the second frame is turned upwardly and toward the left with its transversely extending cross bars in sliding and frictional engagement with the cross bars of the first frame until the two pairs of complementary notches are engaged. Due to the resiliency of the equidistant upper and lower cross'bars as they slide in fricspaced and resilient cross bars welded at their opposite ends to each frame, and quick-detachable means coacting with each conjoining pair of cross bars for fastening together the frames.

3. A wire basket adapted to receive a floral receptacle and consisting of a separable pair of diametrically arranged flat Venturi-shaped frames, each frame comprising a pair of resilient vertically spaced horizontal cross bars, the complementary bars of said frames being crossed at the central vertical axis of the basket, and said crossed bars having interlocking means for detachably uniting the frames.

RODERIC M. KOCH.

REFERENCE: CKTED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,429,198 Fawcett Sept. 12, 1922 2,002,582 Potter May 28, 1935 2,119,889 Pease June '7, 1938 

